The archetypal house and its representation in contemporary art the study of paintings and sculptures

Abstract

The image of the archetypical house is a recurring image in contemporary art and offers an adaptable model susceptible of being reworked and developed from a wide range of creative disciplines. This paper analyses contemporary images of the house and the experience of living taking into account works of renowned contemporary artists. The first part argues that the house shape articulates the border between public and private spheres, and each one of its specific forms is able to create new dialectical relationship between inside and outside and to establish links regarding individual and collective levels. The second part shows that the house repres entation works in a symbolic level as the projection of the human mind and body, at the same time that it evokes different ways of inhabiting. The last part reviews singular approaches to the house image as a place for action and as a space of condensation of living experience and memory.